Mail box



July 13 1926.

W. B. DWYER MAIL BOX Filed Jan. 16

INVENTOR v ATTORN EY WITNESSES Patented July 13, 1926.

UNITED STATES WILLARD B. DWYER, F BENN IN G'ION, VERMONT.

MAIL BOX.

Application filed January 16, 1924. Serial NoJ 686,605.

An object of this invention is the production of a rural mail box divided into an upper compartment for letters and into a lower compartment for parcels, each of said a compartments being closed by a hinged door 1 closing both of said openings, means being and both of said doors sustained in closed position by a single lock.

A further object is the production of rural mail box divided into an upper compartment for the reception of letters and into a lower compartment for the reception of parcels, the first mentioned compartment having an open top, the last mentioned compartmenthaving an open front, hinged doors arranged between the doors to engage a staple for the reception of a suitable lock whereby both doors are held closed or whereby both doors may be simultaneously opened, the upper door having a frame for the reception of a card bearing the owners name, while swingable flags are provided for indicating that mail is or is to be deposited in either of the compartments, simple but novel means being also employed for holding the flags in either their active or inactive position.

A still further object is the provision of means in a rural mail box for efiectively securing the same on a supporting post other objects which will present themselves,

* compartments in open position and the flags 'for contacting engagement with the ends of whereby the same cannot he accidentally removed therefrom except fromthe interior of the box. r

To the attainment of the foregoing and as the nature of the invention is better understood, reference is to be had to the drawing which accompanies and which forms part of this application.

In the drawing Fi'gure 1 is a front elevation of a mail box in accordance with this invention.

Figure 2 is a side elevation thereof, the dotted lines indicating the doors for the swung to inactive position.

Figure 3 is an approximately vertical transverse sectional view through the improvement. I

Figure 4 is a fragmentary elevation to illustrate the means or sustaining the flag for the upper compartment in both active and inactive positions, the latter position of the flag being indicated by the dotted lines.

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional "J'GW on the line 5--5 of Figure 4.

Figure 6 is a fragmentary view showing the manner in which the flag for the lower co partment is sustained in. both active and inactive positions, the dotted lines indicating the position of the flag in inoperative position.

Figure 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view'to illustrate the manner in which W the box is removably sustained on a supporting post. My improved mail box is preferably, but

not necessarily constructed of metal and is so shaped as to shed water therefrom. To accomplish this, the top of the box is arranged at a downward inclination, and the sides of the box are rounded outwardly. The rear of the box, at the top thereof is reduced and terminates in a rearwardly and downwardly rounded portion, as clearly illustrated in Figures 2 and 3 of the drawing. The lower and enlarged portion of the box provides a compartment 1, the upper and reduced portionalso comprising a compartment 2. These compartments are produced by the arrangement of a horizontal partition 3 between the upper reduced and the lower enlarged portion of the said box. The lower compartment 1 is designed to receive therein mail packages, while the upper compartment 2 is adapted for the reception of letters.

The rear wall of the compartment '1, upon both its inner and outer faces, has secured thereon, in any desired manner, centrally disposed vertically arranged reinforcing plates 4 and 5 respectively, and the said plates as well as the rear of the box have a pair of spaced openings therethrough. The

support for the box is indicated by the numeral 6, the same being preferably in the nature of a wooden post and has secured to its outer face a metal plate 7. The metal plate is held'on the post by lag screws 8, and the heads of the lag screws are disposed the rear reinforcing plate 5 of the box. The metal plate 7 carries a pair of spaced lugs 9 which are designed to be received through the referred to o enings in the plates 4 and 5 and the rear of the box. These lugs have openings therethrough for the reception of cotter pins 10. The cotter ins being arranged upon the interior of the compartment" 1 cannot be removed except when .yond the upper edge thereof and which has" access thereto is obtained through the door openin for the said compartment, and consequent y the box cannot be accidentally or surreptitiously removed from its supporting post 6. Also the contacting enga e'ment of the plate with the heads of the l ag screws helps to support the mail box in vertical position on the post 6, relieving the lugs 9 of undue strain and preventing the vertical movement of the box.

The opening in the outer face of the comartment 1 is closed by .a door 11 which is iinged to the box at its lower edge as indicated by the numeral 12. Preferably, and as disclosed by Figure 3 of the drawing, the wall surrounding the rectangular opening in the box is depressed so that the flat door 11 will lie flush with the outer face of the box. The door 11 has centrally secured thereto a strap 13 which is projected beits extremity bent to provide a loop 14.

The top 15, for the upper compartment 2,

comprises a flanged member and is hingedly secured, as at 16, to the rear of the said compartment. The to 15 is centrally provided with a transverseiy arranged frame 17in which is inserted a card bearing the name of the owner of the box, the rural route, etc. These plates are, of course, removably secured in the frames so that each box is provided with a name plate for the owner thereof.

Centrally hinged to the outer edge of the cover 15 there is a strap '18. This strap has its lower end widened and the said widened portion is provided with a rectangular opening 20, for the reception of the loop 14 on the strap 13. Below the opening 20 the strap 18 is provided with a finger hold,

21. When the straps 21 and 18 are thus arranged, the has of a padlock, not shown, may be passed t roughthe loop 18 and thus the doors 15 and 11 are held in closed position by a single locking means.

Finding a. bearing in one side of the compartment 2 there is the cranked portion of an arm. The outer element 22 of the arm carries a flag 23. The inner element 24 of the arm is preferably headed, as at 25 (see Figure 4). This head, when the flag 23 is in active ition is designed to be engaged between t e'body plate and an outer spring ,arm 26 on an an le bracket 27. When the flag 23 is to be rought to inactive position, the same is swung to bring the head 25 out of engagement with the spring arm 26 and then drawn thereover to engage with an outstanding lip 29 formed on an angle extension of the bracket 27 Thus it will be .noted that the flag is effectively held in either its operative or inoperative position.

A flag 30, mounted upon one end of an arm similar to that above described, is also provided for the lower compartment 1. The arm 31 of the said flag 30 is offset to find a bearing in one side of the compartment and is from thence continued in a line parallel with the said arm 31 to provide a second arm 32 which is headed, as at 33 and which is designed to be engaged by a lip 34 or into engagement with a spring arm 35 of a bracket 36 that is secured in the compartment 1. This construction is similar to that above described, and provides a means for holdin the flag 30 either in signalling or inopera ive position.

It is thought thatthe foregoing descri tion, when taken in connection with t e drawing will fully set forth the construction of the'improvement and its advantages to those skilled in the art to which such inventions relate, but it is to be understood that I do not wish to be restricted to the precise details of construction herein set forth and hold myself entitled to such chan es therefrom as fairly fall within the scope of what I claim. 1

In the upper receptacle 2 there is arranged a coin box from which the postman may receive the proper amount of coins for the stamps to be placed on letters or packages.

Having described the invention, I claim A rural mail box, a sup rt therefor, and a signal for the box, sai signal including a flag carrying arm having an offset portion which is'journaled in one side of the box and a parallel extension which is arranged in the box, and said extension having a headed end, a bracket including a plate which is fixed on the said inner face of the box, said bracket having one of its ends bent and extended to provide a spring arm which overlies the bracket plate, said bracket plate having an upstanding element whose outer end is offset, and the headed end of the arm designed to be received between the spring arm and the plate and compressed therebetween when the signal arm is swung to one position and to contact with the offset end of the extension when the signal arm is swung to a second position.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

WILLARD B. DWYER. 

